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Monday Seminar: Oct. 16, Dr. Melanie Moses of the University of New Mexico on "A Tale of Two Societies: Network Efficiency in Ants and Humans"4pm in Biosciences West (map), Room 301 Host: Anna Dornhaus Dr. Moses will be available for appointments on Monday afternoon and Tuesday morning. If you would like to meet with her, please contact Anna Dornhaus at dornhaus@email.arizona.edu. |
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Talk Abstract The Metabolic Theory of Ecology is based on the premise that the rate at which networks (e.g. the circulatory system) deliver energy is a dominant constraint on organism design and function. The theory shows how the geometry of metabolic networks can cause a number of biological rates and times to be proportional to organism mass raised to a 1/4 power. These scaling properties are evident across levels of biological organization, including cells, individuals and ecosystems. Principles underlying metabolic theory also apply to another level of biological organization: that of societies. I focus on the scaling between foraging rates and ant colony size in desert seed-harvesting ants, and the scaling between reproductive rates and energy consumption in human societies. Some aspects of metabolic scaling in societies are characterized by 1/4 power scaling, but others are not. The number of individuals in a society also affects the rate at which information is acquired and distributed, and I explore how properties of information networks scale as a function of their size. The analysis suggests that information may be used to increase the efficiency of energy acquisition and alter scaling exponents in social systems. |
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